One of Lelio’s best-known works, this somewhat nondescript Chilean film strongly focuses on characterisation and performance as a divorcee navigates her silver years in hopes of starving off chronic loneliness.
Review #2,828
Dir. Sebastian Lelio
2013 | Chile | Drama, Romance | 109 min | 2.35:1 | Spanish & English
M18 (passed clean) for sexual content, some graphic nudity, drug use and language
Cast: Paulina Garcia, Sergio Hernandez, Coca Guazzini
Plot: A story set in Santiago and centered on Gloria, a free-spirited older woman, and the realities of her whirlwind relationship with a former naval officer whom she meets out in the clubs.
Awards: Won Silver Bear – Best Actress & Prize of Ecumenical Jury (Berlinale); Nom. for Variety Piazza Grande Award (Locarno)
International Sales Funny Balloons
Accessibility Index
Subject Matter: Moderate – Dating in Silver Years; Loneliness
Narrative Style: Straightforward
Pace: Slightly Slow
Audience Type: Slightly Arthouse
Viewed: MUBI
Spoilers: No
A hit-or-miss director from Chile, Sebastian Lelio’s best-known works were the Oscar-winning transgender drama A Fantastic Woman (2017), Disobedience (also 2017) and this one, which was remade with Julianne Moore in 2018 called Gloria Bell.
The original Spanish version, simply titled Gloria, is the one you should watch instead. Paulina Garcia plays the protagonist, all of 58 years old, as she navigates her silver years as a divorcee.
Hoping to find a companion, she goes to singles’ parties almost every night to starve off loneliness. When Rodolfo (Sergio Hernandez), an older divorced man, chances upon her, they strike up a connection far more intimate than they expected.
Lelio’s work sometimes feels nondescript but strongly focuses on characterisation and performance, which helps it gain enough dramatic clout to make it worth the journey with the duo.
“Are you always this happy?”
There is surprisingly a lot of sex and nudity in this one. Well, desiring someone isn’t just for hormonal youngsters; single seniors need tender loving care as well and this is where Gloria feels refreshing—that the possibilities of new romances remain achievable in the ‘retirement’ years.
However, this also comes with its fair share of past baggage that threatens to make permanent relationships untenable. For instance, Rodolfo still has to support his adult daughters, and certain actions by him bewilder Paulina.
While old age brings about a sense of maturity, humans also tend to fall back on coping mechanisms that may or may not work. Lelio’s film ultimately poses the question: what kinds of compromises can we still accept when we have already lived a life of compromise?
Grade: B+
Trailer:
Music:
Eternality Tan 